Suspect with taser arrested downtown Kelowna

Photo: Castanet

Kelowna RCMP arrested a man in the alley behind the Blue Gator Pub on Lawrence Avenue Wednesday afternoon.

Initial reports indicated a man had been spotted near the Queensway bus stop in downtown Kelowna just after 4 p.m. Wednesday. An eyewitness saw a man drop what looked like a handgun and they immediately called police.

Officers responded and their search led them to the alley behind the Blue Gator pub on Lawrence Ave. Officers swarmed the alley and found the suspect behind the supervised drug injection site. A man wearing a white tracksuit can be seen on surveillance camera with his hands up and surrendering to officers.

Turns out, the weapon was actually a taser that looked very much like a handgun.

"I can tell you the suspect they arrested had a taser and he's now facing weapons charges," says RCMP spokesperson Const. Mike Della-Paolera.